Teac{HERR} Tales: Mastery & Growth

As a 4-H alumnus, I'm naturally drawn to their motto: to make the best better. Despite long to-do lists, I am continually reminded that there is purpose behind each assignment that accompanies our student teaching internship. Many of them to quite simply, make the best, better. 

Now, please don't miss understand me. I am by no means writing this blog and boasting that I am already classified alongside the best and just working to be better. I've got work to do to get there, but assignments like the Action Based Research and Student Learning Objectives are designed to help to do just that. 

I worked alongside my cooperating teacher to develop my understanding of the Student Learning Objective, or SLO process early on in the semester. During which, we selected my Equine Science class and Horse Selection and Evaluation unit to focus my Action Based Research and SLO on. 

SLO's are based off of five components. Those components are strategically designed to help teachers identify an area of need and improvement in their classroom that they wish to intentionally improve. Results can be analyzed to serve as Action Based Research. These five components and how they fit for my SLO are shown below. 

1. Context

- This SLO was focused on 36 students enrolled in an Equine Science class in grades 9-12. This class is an every other day course that is 40 minutes long. 

2. Goal

- Students will classify, evaluate, select and manage animals based on anatomical and physiological characteristics

3. Measures

- Students will take a written pre-test, mid-term and final. They are designed to determine mastery at an initial level (pre-test) and mastery or growth of content knowledge and competency levels at the mid-point and final point of the unit

4. Indicators

- Students will achieve at least a 25% or higher on the pre-test, while on the mid-term and final student scores would increase by 25% of the pre-test score or achieve 100%

5. Expectations

- Scoring brackets were set to determine success. For example 0%-64% of students meeting the indicator targets equates to a failing status, 74%-91% is proficient and 92%-100% earning distinguished

Simply put, various factors played a role in the results that were determined during this assignment. Student awareness of assessments, student absence, every other day class schedules are just a few of the factors that surely influenced the results. 

Simply put, regardless of what school or state I teach in, I will surely be required to perform some form of an SLO or Action Based Research assignment. This was excellent practice, along with a great mentor!

Until the Next Teac{HERR} Tale, K. Janae

K. Janae's High Five - How do we know they got it?

You plan, plan, plan. You create this engaging lessons and design sweet supplemental materials and labs. You call guest speakers, show video clips, get your hands dirty. But how do you know they got it?! We assess. We write multiple choice questions and draft task sheets. We count participation points and mark-up public speaking manuscripts. 

I knocked out a High Five this week with Five Ways to Assess students. Five ways to ensure that they're getting it.

1. Check for Understanding

• Formative Assessment - let's hit the pause button here for a hot second and make sure everyone's on the same page. Because I am doing me student teaching at a school that is one-to-one I am interested in ways to check for understanding digitally. I love this infographic and its digital (and non-digital) formative assessment recommendations.

2. Student Portfolios

• In agriculture education, we have the privilege of teaching in uniquely designed classrooms. Someday's it is a room with four walls and desks, somedays its a chemistry lab, a greenhouse, a field, an agribusiness, a welding shop, you get the point. What about assessing students experiential learning through the format of student portfolios. Not only does this allow students to see how far they come in a marking period or semester, but also provides them with a compilation of projects to show their skills to a future employer. Application, application, application!

3. Peer-Assessment

• Let's create a classroom culture where our students feel comfortable giving and receiving constructive criticism from their peers. I want my classroom to be an environment of respect where my students constantly work to build each other up and make each other next time. I think peer-assessment can be more effective than shared rubrics. What if we used our strong students to help coach weaker students? 

4. Self-Assessment

• Reflection. Growth Mindset. How well did I do? What will make me better for next time? Who said the teacher was the only one who had to do the evaluating of students work? Self-assessment can be a powerful tool to give students ownership of their own progress. Here's some great questions to guide students to high levels of thinking in self-assessment and reflection.

5. Backwards Design. 

• In efforts to make assessments most meaningful and effective, it's important to include them in key parts of backwards design planning. This video talks about assessment done in ways to develop rigor in students, but makes a really awesome point about asking "how will I know?" So how will I know everything for my summative unit assessment? 

• Major Assessments > Intermediate Assessments or Check-Ins > Activities

Simply put, as educators let's ask ourselves, are our assessments authentic? Are the tests, projects and presentations really telling us if our students "got it"?

Simply put, I don't want to assess my students just to assess. I'm not about teaching to the test. I'm about teaching to create connections and dig deeper.

Here's a High Five from Me to You, K. Janae